Vehicle fingerprint bookmark

ABSTRACT

Provided in the present disclosure is a fingerprint bookmark system which may be implemented in a vehicle with one or more configurable interior settings. The fingerprint bookmark system may contain a scanner which may be configured to record a fingerprint from a vehicle occupant such that a fingerprint image showing the fingerprint and a duration data for the fingerprint image are recorded by the scanner. The system may contain one or more processors which may be configured to compare the duration data associated with the fingerprint image with a duration threshold. The one or more processors may be configured to initiate a search to obtain a bookmark for the fingerprint shown in the fingerprint image when the duration data is less than the duration threshold. The one or more processors may be further configured to create a new bookmark when the duration data exceeds the duration threshold.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation of U.S. Nonprovisionalapplication Ser. No. 14/940,161, filed Nov. 13, 2015, the entirecontents of which are incorporated by reference herein for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

Vehicle manufacturers have added a number of new features to vehicleinterior cabins over the last few decades to make their operation morecomfortable and efficient. These features include: modern A/C andheating systems, GPS, satelite radio, back-up cameras, side cameras,seat warmers, power seat adjusters, power sun roof, power windows,automatic parking, digital displays on dashboard and control panel, etc.Many of these features can be personalized for different users, such asseat position and digital display settings. In general, different usersof a vehicle need to reconfigure each feature upon entry. This can beboth time-consuming and inefficient. The present disclosure solves thisproblem by providing a quick, efficient way to “bookmark” the interiorsettings of a vehicle by associating a user's fingerprint with theuser's previous adjustment of the interior settings.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Provided in the present disclosure is a fingerprint bookmark systemwhich may be implemented in a vehicle with one or more configurableinterior settings. The fingerprint bookmark system may contain a scannerwhich may be configured to record a fingerprint from a vehicle occupantsuch that a fingerprint image showing the fingerprint and a durationdata for the fingerprint image are recorded by the scanner. The durationdata may indicate a time value associated with the fingerprint image.The system may also contain one or more processors which may beconfigured to compare the duration data associated with the fingerprintimage with a duration threshold. The one or more processors mayadditionally be configured to initiate a search to obtain a bookmark forthe fingerprint shown in the fingerprint image when the duration data isless than the duration threshold. The one or more processors may befurther configured to create a new bookmark for the fingerprint shown inthe fingerprint image when the duration data exceeds the durationthreshold. The new bookmark may contain at least one instruction that isdifferent from the instructions contained in the old bookmark.

The one or more processors of the fingerprint bookmark system mayinitiate a search to obtain a bookmark. This initiation of a search mayinclude the generating of a search request for execution by a server,where the search request may indicate the fingerprint image. Theinitiation of a search may also include the receiving of a bookmark fromthe server after the server finds a match between the fingerprint imageand a stored fingerprint image. The stored fingerprint image may beassociated with the bookmark.

The duration threshold of the fingerprint bookmark system may be threeseconds. The one or more processors may be located in the vehicle, inthe scanner, or in the server. The one or more processors may be furtherconfigured to perform no action when a bookmark is not found and theduration data is less than the duration threshold. The fingerprint imagemay be an image of multiple fingerprints. The configurable interiorsettings of a vehicle may include any of the following: seat adjustment,mirror adjustment, air temperature, seat temperature, radio, GPS, anddashboard arrangement.

The fingerprint bookmark system may contain a scanner which may beconfigured to record a fingerprint from a vehicle occupant such that afingerprint image showing the fingerprint and a firmness data for thefingerprint image are recorded by the scanner. The firmness data mayindicate a firmness value associated with the fingerprint image. Thesystem may also contain one or more processors which may be configuredto compare the firmness data associated with the fingerprint image witha firmness threshold. The one or more processors may additionally beconfigured to initiate a search to obtain a bookmark for the fingerprintshown in the fingerprint image when the firmness data is less than thefirmness threshold. The one or more processors may be further configuredto create a new bookmark for the fingerprint shown in the fingerprintimage when the firmness data exceeds the firmness threshold. The newbookmark may contain at least one instruction that is different from theinstructions contained in the old bookmark. The one or more processorsmay be further configured to perform no action when the bookmark is notfound and the firmness data is below the firmness threshold.

Additionally provided in the present disclosure is a method forconfiguring interior settings of a vehicle. The method may include thestep of recording, by a scanner, a fingerprint from a vehicle occupantsuch that a fingerprint image showing the fingerprint and a durationdata for the fingerprint image are recorded by the scanner. The durationdata may indicate a time value associated with the fingerprint image.The method may include the step of outputting, by the scanner, thefingerprint image to a server. The method may also include the step ofcomparing, by one or more processors, the duration data associated withthe fingerprint image with a duration threshold. The method mayadditionally include the step of initiating a search when the durationdata is less than the duration threshold to obtain a bookmark for thefingerprint shown in the fingerprint image. The method may furtherinclude the step of creating a new bookmark when the duration dataexceeds the duration threshold for the fingerprint shown in thefingerprint image.

Additional features, advantages, and embodiments of the invention may beset forth or apparent from consideration of the following detaileddescription, drawings, and claims. Moreover, it is to be understood thatboth the foregoing summary of the invention and the following detaileddescription are exemplary and intended to provide further explanationwithout limiting the scope of the invention claimed. The detaileddescription and the specific examples, however, indicate only preferredembodiments of the invention. Various changes and modifications withinthe spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to thoseskilled in the art from this detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the invention, are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention andtogether with the detailed description serve to explain the principlesof the invention. No attempt is made to show structural details of theinvention in more detail than may be necessary for a fundamentalunderstanding of the invention and various ways in which it may bepracticed.

FIG. 1 shows a fingerprint bookmark system inside a transportationapparatus, according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 2 shows a fingerprint bookmark system that captures duration data,according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 shows a fingerprint bookmark system that captures firmness data,according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 shows a fingerprint bookmark system that captures duration data,according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 shows a fingerprint bookmark system that captures firmness data,according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram of a method for modifying interior settingsof a vehicle, according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 7 shows a simplified computer system, according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present disclosure.

In the appended figures, similar components and/or features may have thesame numerical reference label. Further, various components of the sametype may be distinguished by following the reference label by a letterthat distinguishes among the similar components and/or features. If onlythe first numerical reference label is used in the specification, thedescription is applicable to any one of the similar components and/orfeatures having the same first numerical reference label irrespective ofthe letter suffix.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various example embodiments of the present disclosure will be describedbelow with reference to the drawings constituting a part of thedescription. It should be understood that, although terms representingdirections are used in the present disclosure, such as “front”, “rear”,“upper”, “lower”, “left”, “right”, and the like, for describing variousexemplary structural parts and elements of the present disclosure, theseterms are used herein only for the purpose of convenience of explanationand are determined based on the exemplary orientations shown in thedrawings. Since the embodiments disclosed by the present disclosure canbe arranged according to different directions, these terms representingdirections are merely used for illustration and should not be regardedas limiting. Wherever possible, the same or similar reference marks usedin the present disclosure refer to the same components.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical terms used herein have the samemeanings as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art towhich the invention pertains. The embodiments of the invention and thevarious features and advantageous details thereof are explained morefully with reference to the non-limiting embodiments and examples thatare described and/or illustrated in the accompanying drawings anddetailed in the following description. It should be noted that thefeatures illustrated in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale,and features of one embodiment may be employed with other embodiments asthe skilled artisan would recognize, even if not explicitly statedherein. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniquesmay be omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments of theinvention. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate anunderstanding of ways in which the invention may be practiced and tofurther enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments ofthe invention. Accordingly, the examples and embodiments herein shouldnot be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, which isdefined solely by the appended claims and applicable law. Moreover, itis noted that like reference numerals reference similar parts throughoutthe several views of the drawings.

Described herein, are embodiments for a fingerprint bookmark system thatmay be employed in a vehicle. The present disclosure solves the problemin the automobile industry in which different drivers of the samevehicles must reconfigure a wide range of interior settings in a vehicleupon each entry. The fingerprint bookmark system provides a quick,efficient way to “bookmark” the interior settings of a vehicle byassociating a user's fingerprint with the user's previous adjustment ofthe interior settings. The system may quickly differentiate between a“short touch” and a “long touch”, the former being associated withimplementing a previously recorded bookmark and the latter beingassociated with recording a new bookmark.

FIG. 1 generally illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a fingerprintbookmark system 130 on a dashboard 120 in a transportation apparatus100. Transportation apparatus 100 may include any apparatus that movesin distance. Examples of transportation apparatus 100 may include avehicle such as a car, a bus, a train, a truck, a tram, or any othertype of vehicle; may include a vessel such as a boat, a ship, a barge, aferry or any other type of watercraft; may include an aircraft such asan airplane, a spaceship, or any other type of aircraft; or may includeany other transportation apparatus. In one example, transportationapparatus 100 is an electrical automobile. As shown, transportationapparatus 100 may include a cabin 110 with a volume.

As shown in FIG. 1, transportation apparatus 100 may comprise one ormore steering wheels 140 in cabin 110. Although only one steering wheel140 is shown in FIG. 1, this is not intended to be limiting. In someexamples, transportation apparatus 100 may include more than onesteering wheel 140. For example, it is contemplated that transportationapparatus 100 may be an aircraft that comprises at least a main steeringwheel 140 for the main pilot and at least a secondary steering wheel 140for a co-polit.

As also shown in FIG. 1, one or more users 150 may be arranged to occupytheir corresponding positions in cabin 110. Users 150 may include one ormore drivers that control the movement or navigation of transportationapparatus 100, one or more passengers, and/or any other type of users150. In this example, user 150 a is a driver that controls the drivingof transportation apparatus 100, while other users 150, e.g., users 150b-d, are passengers. As still shown, there may be multiple rows of users150 within cabin 110 of transportation apparatus 100.

In some embodiments, fingerprint bookmark system 130 can be accessed byany one of users 150. In some embodiments, fingerprint bookmark system130 does not necessarily need to be located on dashboard 120, but may belocated at any location within transportation apparatus 100, including alocation on steering wheel 140. Furthermore, fingerprint bookmark system130 can be used to adjust interior settings for any one of users 150.For example, user 150 a may use fingerprint bookmark system 130 toadjust certain interior settings for user 150 d, e.g., seat temperature,seat adjustment, etc. Similarly, user 150 b may use vehicle interiorcontrol 130 to adjust certain interior settings for all users 150, e.g.,air temperature.

FIG. 2 shows a fingerprint bookmark system 200 that captures durationdata, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Insome embodiments, a fingerprint scanner 210 records a fingerprint imagedata 215 from a user input 205. Fingerprint scanner 210 may be any oneof a wide number of available fingerprint scanning technologies. Forexample, fingerprint scanner 210 may be a an optical sensor, acapacitive sensor, an ultrasound sensor, or a thermal sensor, amongothers. In some embodiments, fingerprint scanner 210 may be a capacitivesensor that determines each pixel value of an image based on thecapacitance measured at each pixel location, which varies due to thedifferent dielectric constants of skin ridges compared to a valleys. Insome embodiments, fingerprint scanner 210 may employ a high frequencyultrasound or optical sensor that receives a varying signal based on thechange in light reflectance related to the skin ridges. In someembodiments, finger print scanner 210 is a thermal scanner that measuresthe difference in temperature of different pixel areas, with hightemperature areas corresponding to skin ridges and low temperature areascorresponding to valleys. In some embodiments, user input 205 may beplaced directly on scanner 210, making physical contact with the surfaceof scanner 210. In some embodiments, user input 205 may be at a distancefrom scanner 210 when a recording is made.

In some embodiments, fingerprint image data 215 may be an image file.The image file may be compressed or uncompressed, and may be any one ofseveral digital image file types, such as TIFF, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP,etc. In some embodiments, fingerprint image data 215 may not be an imagefile type, but may be a data representation of fingerprint topography.For example, while a fingerprint usually appears as a series of darklines that represent ridges of the skin, fingerprint image data 215 maybe an integer representing the number of ridges of the skin.Furthermore, fingerprint image data 215 may be an integer representingthe number of crossovers, ridge bifurcations, ridge endings, islands, orpores that appear on a finger of user input 205. Furthermore,fingerprint image data 215 may be any digital representation of anyfeature of a fingerprint.

In some embodiments, user input 205 is not a single finger but one ormore fingers of the same hand or of different hands. In someembodiments, user input 205 is not limited to a vehicle occupant'sfinger, but may include any one of several biometrics, such as facialrecognition, palm print, iris scan, voice recognition, DNA, etc.

In some embodiments, fingerprint scanner 210 also records a durationdata 220. Duration data 220 may indicate a time value associated withhow long user input 205 is in direct physical contact with fingerprintscanner 210. For example, if fingerprint scanner 210 is an opticalsensor and a vehicle occupant places a finger in direct contact with thescanner for 5 seconds, then duration data 220 may be equal to 5 seconds.In some embodiments, duration data 220 is not just a single numericalvalue but may be a set of numerical values representing present and pastdurations or durations of different fingers that are placed onfingerprint scanner 210 simultaneously.

In some embodiments, fingerprint image data 215 and duration data 220are sent to a server 225. In some embodiments, server 225 is locatedoutside the vehicle. In other embodiments, server 225 is located insidethe vehicle, and behaves similar to a local storage device.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a set of fingerprintimages and their corresponding bookmarks are stored within server 225.The stored bookmarks each contain one or more instructions forconfiguring interiors setting of a vehicle. Interior settings of avehicle that may be configured by fingerprint bookmark system 200include: A/C and heating settings, GPS, satelite radio, back-up cameras,side cameras, seat warmers, power seat adjusters, power sun roof, powerwindows, automatic parking, digital displays on dashboard and controlpanel, etc. For example, one bookmark may contain instructions to setthe air temperature to 70 degrees Fahrenheit and the radio station to96.3 FM. As another example, one bookmark may contain instructions toset the digital display on the dashboard to show the GPS display on theright side of the dashboard and the radio display on the left side,while another bookmark may contain instructions to display the opposite.As another example, one bookmark may contain instructions to set thedriver's seat in a certain position, while another bookmark may containinstructions to set the passenger's seat in a certain position. In someembodiments, each stored fingerprint image within server 225 isassociated with a different bookmark. In other embodiments, differentstored fingerprint images within server 225 are associated with the samebookmark. For example, different vehicle occupants may prefer similarinterior settings, such as radio station, digital display configuration,etc. It is easy to see the wide range of embodiments that are availablethrough the present disclosure.

In some embodiments, at operation 230 server 225 may perform a search inwhich it is determined whether there is a stored fingerprint imagewithin server 225 that matches fingerprint image data 215. The search atoperation 230 need not necessarily be performed within server 225.Operation 230 may be performed by a processor located inside server 225,inside fingerprint scanner 210, inside the vehicle, or outside thevehicle. Operation 230 may performed according to any one of severalavailable fingerprint matching techniques, such as minutiae-basedmatching techniques, which examine specific features of fingerprinttopography, or pattern matching techniques, which compare two images todetermine how similar they are.

In some embodiments, at operation 235 server 225 makes a determinationas to whether duration data 220 exceeds some duration threshold. Theduration threshold may be set to any time value, such as 3 seconds, 5seconds, or 10 seconds. When duration data 220 is less than the durationthreshold, it may be determined that user input 205 from the vehicleoccupant was a “short touch”. Conversely, when duration data 220 exceedsthe duration threshold, it may be determined that user input 205 fromthe vehicle occupant was a “long touch”. When duration data 220 is equalto the duration threshold, it may be a “short touch” or a “long touch”,depending on the embodiment. The determination at operation 235 need notnecessarily be performed within server 225. Operation 235 may beperformed by a processor located inside server 225, inside fingerprintscanner 210, inside the vehicle, or outside the vehicle. Operation 235may be performed in software, or in hardware such as using a comparatorcircuit.

In some embodiments, fingerprint bookmark system 200 makes adetermination as to which of several operations to perform. Theseoperations include, but are not limited to: a first operation 240 toactivate a found bookmark when search 230 finds a matching bookmark andduration data 220 is less than the duration threshold, a secondoperation 245 to do nothing when search 230 does not find a matchingbookmark and duration data 220 is less than the duration threshold, athird operation 250 to overwrite the found bookmark with a new bookmarkcomprising the vehicle's current interior settings when search 230 findsa matching bookmark and duration data 220 exceeds the durationthreshold, and a fourth operation 255 to create a new bookmarkcomprising the vehicle's current interior settings when search 230 doesnot find a matching bookmark and duration data 220 exceeds the durationthreshold.

Fingerprint bookmark system 200 need not necessarily determine which ofthese four operations to perform within server 225. The determinationmay be made by a processor located inside server 225, inside fingerprintscanner 210, inside the vehicle, or outside the vehicle. Thedetermination may be performed in software or in hardware. Similarly,operations 240, 245, 250, and 255 may be initiated by a processorlocated inside server 225, inside fingerprint scanner 210, inside thevehicle, or outside the vehicle. Eventually, operations 240, 245, 250,and 255 may be communicated to the one or more vehicle interior settingsto which a bookmark corresponds. For example, where a vehicle occupantindicates via user input 205 that he/she desires to activate apreviously created bookmark to configure a satellite radio display onthe dashboard, he/she may touch fingerprint scanner 210 for 1 second,which may be less than a duration threshold of 4 seconds, and may resultin operation 240 being performed to send a signal from a server to thevehicle and subsequently to the digital display for the dashboard,indicating that the satellite radio be displayed according to thepreviously created bookmark.

As another example, a vehicle occupant may purchase a new vehicle withfingerprint bookmark system 200. Upon entry, the vehicle occupant mayadjust the rear view mirror and side mirrors to his specifications andsubsequently press fingerprint scanner 210 for 5 seconds, which mayexceed a duration threshold of 2.5 seconds. Fingerprint image data 215of the vehicle occupant's finger may be transmitted outside the vehicleto server 225 which may perform a search 230 for a correspondingbookmark with a matching stored fingerprint image. Search 230 may notfind a corresponding bookmark due to vehicle occupant's first use offingerprint bookmark system 200, causing a signal to be transmitted backto the vehicle indicating a corresponding bookmark was not found.Fingerprint bookmark system 200 may perform operation 255 to create anew bookmark comprising the vehicle's current interior settings whichmay include the current position of the rear view mirror and sidemirrors. The newly created bookmark may be transmitted from inside thevehicle to outside the vehicle to server 225 to be stored for laterretrieval.

FIG. 3 shows a fingerprint bookmark system 300 that captures firmnessdata, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Insome embodiments, a fingerprint scanner 310 records both a fingerprintimage data 315 and a firmness data 320. Firmness data 320 may indicate afirmness value associated with how firm the contact is of user input 305on fingerprint scanner 310. For example, the firmness value may beexpressed in Newtons, the SI unit for force, or it may be expressed inkilograms*m/s², or in some other units.

In some embodiments, fingerprint bookmark system 300 may comprise aserver 325 located either inside or outside the vehicle. Server 325 maycomprise an operation 330 in which it is determined whether there is astored fingerprint image within server 325 that matches fingerprintimage data 315. In some embodiments, at operation 335 server 325 makes adetermination as to whether firmness data 320 exceeds some firmnessthreshold. The firmness threshold may be set to any force value, such as3 Newtons, 5 Newtons, or 10 Newtons. When firmness data 320 is less thanthe firmness threshold, it may be determined that user input 305 was a“light touch”. Conversely, when firmness data 320 exceeds the firmnessthreshold, it may be determined that user input 305 from the vehicleoccupant was a “hard touch”. When firmness data 320 is equal to thefirmness threshold, it may be a “light touch” or a “hard touch”,depending on the embodiment. The determination at operation 335 need notnecessarily be performed within server 325. Operation 335 may beperformed by a processor located inside server 325, inside fingerprintscanner 310, inside the vehicle, or outside the vehicle. Operation 335may be performed in software, or in hardware such as using a comparatorcircuit.

In some embodiments, fingerprint bookmark system 300 makes adetermination as to which of several operations to perform. Theseoperations include, but are not limited to: a first operation 340 toactivate a found bookmark when search 330 finds a matching bookmark andfirmness data 320 is less than the firmness threshold, a secondoperation 345 to do nothing when search 330 does not find a matchingbookmark and firmness data 320 is less than the firmness threshold, athird operation 350 to overwrite the found bookmark with a new bookmarkcomprising the vehicle's current interior settings when search 330 findsa matching bookmark and firmness data 320 exceeds the firmnessthreshold, and a fourth operation 355 to create a new bookmarkcomprising the vehicle's current interior settings when search 330 doesnot find a matching bookmark and firmness data 320 exceeds the firmnessthreshold.

Fingerprint bookmark system 300 need not necessarily determine which ofthese four operations to perform within server 325. The determinationmay be made by a processor located inside server 325, inside fingerprintscanner 310, inside the vehicle, or outside the vehicle. Thedetermination may be performed in software or in hardware. Similarly,operations 340, 345, 350, and 355 may be initiated by a processorlocated inside server 325, inside fingerprint scanner 310, inside thevehicle, or outside the vehicle. Eventually, operations 340, 345, 350,and 355 may be communicated to the one or more vehicle interior settingsto which a bookmark corresponds.

FIG. 4 shows a fingerprint bookmark system 400 similar to fingerprintbookmark system 200 shown in FIG. 2, comprising a user input 405, afingerprint scanner 410 configured to record a fingerprint image data415 and a duration data 420, and a server 425 configured to search for acorresponding bookmark at operation 430 and store a newly createdbookmark at operation 460 when a local processor 465 determines thatduration data 420 exceeds the duration threshold at operation 435.Operations 440, 445, 450, and 455 may be performed within localprocessor 465. Both operation 450 and 455 result in fingerprint bookmarksystem 400 creating a new bookmark that is transmitted to server 425 forlater retrieval.

FIG. 5 shows a fingerprint bookmark system 500 similar to fingerprintbookmark system 300 shown in FIG. 3, comprising a user input 505, afingerprint scanner 510 configured to record a fingerprint image data515 and a firmness data 520, and a server 525 configured to search for acorresponding bookmark at operation 530 and store a newly createdbookmark at operation 560 when a local processor 565 determines thatfirmness data 520 exceeds the firmness threshold at operation 535.Operations 540, 545, 550, and 555 may be performed within localprocessor 565. Both operation 550 and 555 result in fingerprint bookmarksystem 500 creating a new bookmark that is transmitted to server 525 forlater retrieval.

FIG. 6 shows a method 600 for modifying interior settings of a vehicle,according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Atoperation 610, a scanner records a fingerprint image and a durationdata. At operation 620, a scanner outputs a fingerprint image to aserver. At operation 630, one or more processors compare a duration datawith a duration threshold. At operation 640, when a duration data isless than a duration threshold, a search is initiated to obtain a firstbookmark and instructions contained within the first bookmark areimplemented. At operation 650, when a duration data exceeds a durationthreshold, a second bookmark is created.

Operations of the method 600 need not be performed in the order listed,or in any particular order. For example, in some embodiments, thecomparing of a duration data with a duration threshold at operation 630may occur before the outputting of a fingerprint image to a server atoperation 620. As another example, operation 610 may be bifurcated insome embodiments. The recording of a fingerprint image at operation 610may occur before operation 620 while the recording of a duration data atoperation 610 may occur after operation 620. Furthermore, operations 640and 650 need not both be performed each time operations 610, 620, and630 are performed. In some embodiments, operations 640 and 650 aremutually exclusive and only one will be performed during a singleiteration through method 600. In other embodiments, both operations 640and 650 may be performed during a single iteration through method 600.

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment of a computer system 700. A computersystem 700 as illustrated in FIG. 7 may be incorporated into devicessuch as a portable electronic device, mobile phone, or other device asdescribed herein. FIG. 7 provides a schematic illustration of oneembodiment of a computer system 700 that can perform some or all of thesteps of the methods provided by various embodiments. It should be notedthat FIG. 7 is meant only to provide a generalized illustration ofvarious components, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate.FIG. 7, therefore, broadly illustrates how individual system elementsmay be implemented in a relatively separated or relatively moreintegrated manner.

The computer system 700 is shown comprising hardware elements that canbe electrically coupled via a bus 705, or may otherwise be incommunication, as appropriate. The hardware elements may include one ormore processors 710, including without limitation one or moregeneral-purpose processors and/or one or more special-purpose processorssuch as digital signal processing chips, graphics accelerationprocessors, and/or the like; one or more input devices 715, which caninclude without limitation a mouse, a keyboard, a camera, and/or thelike; and one or more output devices 720, which can include withoutlimitation a display device, a printer, and/or the like.

The computer system 700 may further include and/or be in communicationwith one or more non-transitory storage devices 725, which can comprise,without limitation, local and/or network accessible storage, and/or caninclude, without limitation, a disk drive, a drive array, an opticalstorage device, a solid-state storage device, such as a random accessmemory (“RAM”), and/or a read-only memory (“ROM”), which can beprogrammable, flash-updateable, and/or the like. Such storage devicesmay be configured to implement any appropriate data stores, includingwithout limitation, various file systems, database structures, and/orthe like.

The computer system 700 might also include a communications subsystem730, which can include without limitation a modem, a network card(wireless or wired), an infrared communication device, a wirelesscommunication device, and/or a chipset such as a Bluetooth™ device, an802.11 device, a WiFi device, a WiMax device, cellular communicationfacilities, etc., and/or the like. The communications subsystem 730 mayinclude one or more input and/or output communication interfaces topermit data to be exchanged with a network such as the network describedbelow to name one example, other computer systems, television, and/orany other devices described herein. Depending on the desiredfunctionality and/or other implementation concerns, a portableelectronic device or similar device may communicate image and/or otherinformation via the communications subsystem 730. In other embodiments,a portable electronic device, e.g. the first electronic device, may beincorporated into the computer system 700, e.g., an electronic device asan input device 715. In some embodiments, the computer system 700 willfurther comprise a working memory 735, which can include a RAM or ROMdevice, as described above.

The computer system 700 also can include software elements, shown asbeing currently located within the working memory 735, including anoperating system 740, device drivers, executable libraries, and/or othercode, such as one or more application programs 745, which may comprisecomputer programs provided by various embodiments, and/or may bedesigned to implement methods, and/or configure systems, provided byother embodiments, as described herein. Merely by way of example, one ormore procedures described with respect to the methods discussed above,such as those described in relation to FIG. 7, might be implemented ascode and/or instructions executable by a computer and/or a processorwithin a computer; in an aspect, then, such code and/or instructions canbe used to configure and/or adapt a general purpose computer or otherdevice to perform one or more operations in accordance with thedescribed methods.

A set of these instructions and/or code may be stored on anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium, such as the storagedevice(s) 725 described above. In some cases, the storage medium mightbe incorporated within a computer system, such as computer system 700.In other embodiments, the storage medium might be separate from acomputer system e.g., a removable medium, such as a compact disc, and/orprovided in an installation package, such that the storage medium can beused to program, configure, and/or adapt a general purpose computer withthe instructions/code stored thereon. These instructions might take theform of executable code, which is executable by the computer system 700and/or might take the form of source and/or installable code, which,upon compilation and/or installation on the computer system 700 e.g.,using any of a variety of generally available compilers, installationprograms, compression/decompression utilities, etc., then takes the formof executable code.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that substantialvariations may be made in accordance with specific requirements. Forexample, customized hardware might also be used, and/or particularelements might be implemented in hardware, software including portablesoftware, such as applets, etc., or both. Further, connection to othercomputing devices such as network input/output devices may be employed.

As mentioned above, in one aspect, some embodiments may employ acomputer system such as the computer system 700 to perform methods inaccordance with various embodiments of the technology. According to aset of embodiments, some or all of the procedures of such methods areperformed by the computer system 700 in response to processor 710executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions, which mightbe incorporated into the operating system 740 and/or other code, such asan application program 745, contained in the working memory 735. Suchinstructions may be read into the working memory 735 from anothercomputer-readable medium, such as one or more of the storage device(s)725. Merely by way of example, execution of the sequences ofinstructions contained in the working memory 735 might cause theprocessor(s) 710 to perform one or more procedures of the methodsdescribed herein. Additionally or alternatively, portions of the methodsdescribed herein may be executed through specialized hardware.

The terms “machine-readable medium” and “computer-readable medium,” asused herein, refer to any medium that participates in providing datathat causes a machine to operate in a specific fashion. In an embodimentimplemented using the computer system 700, various computer-readablemedia might be involved in providing instructions/code to processor(s)710 for execution and/or might be used to store and/or carry suchinstructions/code. In many implementations, a computer-readable mediumis a physical and/or tangible storage medium.

Such a medium may take the form of a non-volatile media or volatilemedia. Non-volatile media include, for example, optical and/or magneticdisks, such as the storage device(s) 725. Volatile media include,without limitation, dynamic memory, such as the working memory 735.

Common forms of physical and/or tangible computer-readable mediainclude, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk,magnetic tape, or any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, any other opticalmedium, punchcards, papertape, any other physical medium with patternsof holes, a RAM, a PROM, EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip orcartridge, or any other medium from which a computer can readinstructions and/or code.

Various forms of computer-readable media may be involved in carrying oneor more sequences of one or more instructions to the processor(s) 710for execution. Merely by way of example, the instructions may initiallybe carried on a magnetic disk and/or optical disc of a remote computer.A remote computer might load the instructions into its dynamic memoryand send the instructions as signals over a transmission medium to bereceived and/or executed by the computer system 700.

The communications subsystem 730 and/or components thereof generallywill receive signals, and the bus 705 then might carry the signalsand/or the data, instructions, etc. carried by the signals to theworking memory 735, from which the processor(s) 710 retrieves andexecutes the instructions. The instructions received by the workingmemory 735 may optionally be stored on a non-transitory storage device725 either before or after execution by the processor(s) 710.

The methods, systems, and devices discussed above are examples. Variousconfigurations may omit, substitute, or add various procedures orcomponents as appropriate. For instance, in alternative configurations,the methods may be performed in an order different from that described,and/or various stages may be added, omitted, and/or combined. Also,features described with respect to certain configurations may becombined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elementsof the configurations may be combined in a similar manner. Also,technology evolves and, thus, many of the elements are examples and donot limit the scope of the disclosure or claims.

Specific details are given in the description to provide a thoroughunderstanding of exemplary configurations including implementations.However, configurations may be practiced without these specific details.For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, andtechniques have been shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoidobscuring the configurations. This description provides exampleconfigurations only, and does not limit the scope, applicability, orconfigurations of the claims. Rather, the preceding description of theconfigurations will provide those skilled in the art with an enablingdescription for implementing described techniques. Various changes maybe made in the function and arrangement of elements without departingfrom the spirit or scope of the disclosure.

Also, configurations may be described as a process which is depicted asa flow diagram or block diagram. Although each may describe theoperations as a sequential process, many of the operations can beperformed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of theoperations may be rearranged. A process may have additional steps notincluded in the figure. Furthermore, examples of the methods may beimplemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode,hardware description languages, or any combination thereof. Whenimplemented in software, firmware, middleware, or microcode, the programcode or code segments to perform the necessary tasks may be stored in anon-transitory computer-readable medium such as a storage medium.Processors may perform the described tasks.

Having described several example configurations, various modifications,alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used without departingfrom the spirit of the disclosure. For example, the above elements maybe components of a larger system, wherein other rules may takeprecedence over or otherwise modify the application of the technology.Also, a number of steps may be undertaken before, during, or after theabove elements are considered. Accordingly, the above description doesnot bind the scope of the claims.

As used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms “a”, “an”,and “the” include plural references unless the context clearly dictatesotherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a user” includes a pluralityof such users, and reference to “the processor” includes reference toone or more processors and equivalents thereof known to those skilled inthe art, and so forth.

Also, the words “comprise”, “comprising”, “contains”, “containing”,“include”, “including”, and “includes”, when used in this specificationand in the following claims, are intended to specify the presence ofstated features, integers, components, or steps, but they do notpreclude the presence or addition of one or more other features,integers, components, steps, acts, or groups.

What is claimed is:
 1. A fingerprint bookmark system in a vehicle withone or more configurable interior settings, the fingerprint bookmarksystem comprising: a scanner configured to record a fingerprint from avehicle occupant such that a fingerprint image showing the fingerprintand duration data for the fingerprint image are recorded by the scanner,the duration data indicating a time value associated with thefingerprint image; a comparator circuit coupled with the scanner fordetermining whether the duration data associated with the fingerprintimage is less than or greater than a duration threshold, wherein thecomparator circuit is located within the vehicle; and one or moreprocessors configured to: when the comparator circuit determines thatthe duration data is less than the duration threshold, initiate a searchto obtain a first bookmark for the fingerprint shown in the fingerprintimage and to configure an interior setting of the vehicle in accordancewith one or more instructions contained in the first bookmark; and whenthe comparator circuit determines that the duration data is greater thanthe duration threshold, overwriting the first bookmark by replacing thefirst bookmark with a second bookmark for the fingerprint shown in thefingerprint image, wherein the second bookmark contains at least oneinstruction that is different from each of the one or more instructionscontained in the first bookmark.
 2. The fingerprint bookmark system ofclaim 1, wherein initiating the search to obtain the first bookmarkcomprises: generating a search request for execution by a remote server,the search request indicating the fingerprint image; and receiving thefirst bookmark from the remote server after the remote server finds amatch between the fingerprint image and a stored fingerprint image, thestored fingerprint image being stored in association with the firstbookmark, wherein the remote server is remote from the vehicle.
 3. Thevehicle fingerprint bookmark system of claim 1, wherein the durationthreshold is three seconds.
 4. The vehicle fingerprint bookmark systemof claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are located in thevehicle.
 5. The vehicle fingerprint bookmark system of claim 1, whereinthe one or more processors are located in the scanner.
 6. The vehiclefingerprint bookmark system of claim 1, wherein the one or moreprocessors are further configured to perform no action when the firstbookmark is not found and the duration data is less than the durationthreshold.
 7. The vehicle fingerprint bookmark system of claim 1,wherein the fingerprint image is an image of multiple fingerprints. 8.The vehicle fingerprint bookmark system of claim 1, wherein the one ormore configurable interior settings includes one or more of thefollowing: seat adjustment, mirror adjustment, air temperature, seattemperature, radio, GPS, and dashboard arrangement.
 9. A method forconfiguring interior settings of a vehicle, the method comprising:recording, by a scanner, a fingerprint from a vehicle occupant such thata fingerprint image showing the fingerprint and duration data for thefingerprint image are recorded by the scanner, the duration dataindicating a time value associated with the fingerprint image;determining, by a comparator circuit coupled with the scanner, whetherthe duration data associated with the fingerprint image is less than orgreater than a duration threshold, wherein the comparator circuit islocated within the vehicle; when the comparator circuit determines thatthe duration data is less than the duration threshold, initiating asearch, by one or more processors, to obtain a first bookmark for thefingerprint shown in the fingerprint image and to configure an interiorsetting of the vehicle in accordance with one or more instructionscontained in the first bookmark; and when the comparator circuitdetermines that the duration data is greater than the durationthreshold, overwriting, by the one or more processors, the firstbookmark by replacing the first bookmark with a second bookmark for thefingerprint shown in the fingerprint image, wherein the second bookmarkcontains at least one instruction that is different from each of the oneor more instructions contained in the first bookmark.
 10. The method ofclaim 9, wherein the duration threshold is three seconds.
 11. The methodof claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are located in thevehicle.
 12. The method of claim 9, wherein the one or more processorsare located in the scanner.
 13. The method of claim 9, furthercomprising performing no action when the first bookmark is not found andthe duration data is less than the duration threshold.